In vitro micropropagation of Alpinia zerumbet Variegate, an important medicinal plant, through rhizome bud explants

An ideal Micropropagation method of Alpinia zerumbet has been developed using rhizome bud explants. Basal MS medium supplemented with 3% sucrose (w/v) different concentrations of BAP in combination with 0.5 mg / L of kinetin. Highest percentage (95%) of explants for shoot induction and multiple shoot (7.9 per explants) production were observed in the  combination of 1.5 mg / L of BAP, 0.5 mg / L of kinetin. In this case, all the inoculated explants induced multiple shoots within 6-7 weeks of inoculation. Rooting was induced in a medium having half strength MS supplemented with 0.5mg / L of IBA. Most of the generated shoots were successfully transferred to soil under field conditions

Comparative antioxidant studies of in vivo leaves and in vitro callus of Crotalaria pallida Aiton (Fabaceae)

Crotalaria pallida Aiton. Fabaceae has been used for the treatment of various diseases. The aim of the present study was to assess the enzymatic and non-enzymatic activities of Crotalaria pallida Aiton. The enzymatic antioxidant activity of in vivo leaves and in vitro callus was compared. The SOD shows high activity of (0.78±0.036) units/g tissue in in vivo leaves and Catalase shows high activity of (3.563±0.16) units/g tissue in in vitro callus. The non-enzymatic antioxidant properties of in vivo leaves and in vitro callus were evaluated using multiple assays. DPPH, Hydroxyl scavenging activity and Superoxide ion radical scavenging activity of in vivo leaves and in vitro callus were exhibited the IC50 values of 25±0.16 and 23.57±0.07, 90.18±3.57 and 77.41±2.5, 72.58±1.55 and 42.96±0.29 respectively. The total antioxidant activity showed increase with increase in concentration of both in vivo leaves and in vitro callus. The obtained results indicate that in vivo leaves and in vitro callus of Crotalaria pallida Aiton posses potent enzymatic activity and is a good source of non enzymatic antioxidants

Chemical profiling of fern Cheilosoria mysurensis (Wall. ex Hook.) Ching & Shing and its biological activity

Cheilosoria mysurensis (Wall. ex Hook.) Ching & Shing, a medicinal fern traditionally used to treat burns, throat pain and bone fracture. There is no any scientific report regarding anticancer studies of this species. The aim of the study was to find out the chemical components through GC/MS analysis with their antioxidant and cytotoxic activity. GC-MS analysis shows primary ingredients viz, Cis-9, 10-epoxyoctadecan-1-ol and Oxiraneundecanoic acid, 3-pentyl-, methyl ester, trans were present. High free-radical scavenging activity has been discovered in 2, 2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and showed the IC50 value of 52.13±0.33. Furthermore, C. mysurensis also showed good cytotoxic effects against DLA and EAC cell lines with values of 72.9% and 79.5% at 200 µg/ml dose respectively. Overall findings suggested that the identified chemical compounds proved to be rich in antioxidant property. Further, this fern can be a good resource for pharma industry to produce novel anti-cancer drugs

Antibacterial activity of Crotalaria pallida Aiton. (Fabaceae)

Crotalaria pallida Aiton. Fabaceae has been used for the treatment of various diseases like. The aim of the present study is to assess antibacterial activity of methanolic leaves extract of Crotalaria pallida Aiton. Escherichia coli and Klebsilla pneumonieae showed maximum susceptibility 19±1 and 18.66±0.57 at 25 mg/ml concentration respectively while Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Bacillus sp. and Staphylococcus aureus showed less susceptibility 11±1, 11.33±1.5 and 15±1 at 25 mg/ml concentration respectively. Overall results have proved that C. pallida leaves posses significant antibacterial activity

Quantitative phytochemical analysis and their antioxidant activity of Cocculus hirsutus (l.) Diels fruit

Anthocyanins, a large group of red-blue plant pigments, occur in flowers and fruits of higher plants. The fruits of Cocculus hirsutus (L.) Diels was extracted with acidified methanol and used for  phytochemicals and antioxidant activity analysis. The total flavonoid, anthocyanin and phenol content were found to be 260±20 mg/g, 0.788±0.236 mg/g and 326.66±3.05 mg/g respectively. DPPH, ABTS and Nitric oxidescavenging activity exhibited an IC50 value of111.35±1.12, 80.90±0.39 and 79.84±1.48 respectively. The IC50 value of reducing power assay, inhibition of lipid peroxidase in egg yolk and Metal chelating and was identified to be 97.03 ±0.88, 107.6±0.48 and 200.27±1.85µg/ml respectively. The positive control showed an IC50 value of 39.78 ±0.07, 23.68±0.06, 63.62±1.22, 53.74±1.34, and 70.59±2.8 and 51.26±0.39 µg/ml respectively. The total antioxidant activity of the fruit anthocyanin exhibited highest absorbance of 0.382±0.005 for 100µg/ml concentration.  

Assessing the Genetic Diversity of Parents for Developing Hybrids Through Morphological and Molecular Markers in Rice (Oryza sativa L.)

Abstract The advancement of hybrid technology plays a crucial role in addressing yield plateau and diminishing resources in rice cultivating regions. The knowledge of genetic diversity among parental lines is a prerequisite for effective hybrid breeding program. In the current study, a set of 66 parental lines was studied for diversity based on both morphological characters and microsatellite SSR markers. The genetic variability parameters unveiled that number of productive tillers per plant, single plant yield and hundred grain weight exhibited additive gene action. Mahalanobis D2 statistics grouped the genotypes into ten clusters based on yield and grain traits. The principal component analysis identified four PCs with eigen value more than one accounting for 71.28% of cumulative variance. The polymorphic SSR markers produced 122 alleles among which the marker RM474 recorded the highest values for Polymorphic Information Content (0.83) and heterozygosity index (0.85). The genotypes were assembled in seven clusters based on jaccard distances using the Unweighted Pair Group method with Arithmetic Mean (UPGMA). The population structure divided the entire population into 3 subpopulations. In both clustering, there was difference in the assembling of genotypes, but, good performing genotypes identified through PCA were positioned in different clusters in both approaches. The genotypes CBSN 495 and CBSN 494 located in different clusters were identified as the potential restorers for high yielding and short duration hybrids. The hybridization among CRR Dhan 310, CRR Dhan 315, IR64 DRT, CB 17135 and WGL 347 can be performed to develop climate smart varieties with improved nutrition